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In New York, WCC explores “unique gift that we can offer in our public engagement”

Bishop Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm and H.E. Archbishop Dr Vicken Aykazian, moderator and vice moderator of the World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee, respectively, traveled to New York City on 3-4 April to deepen the WCC’s engagement with the United Nations.

08 April 2024

Liturgical text

World Health Day Prayer Sunday 7 April 2024

With the Ecumenical Prayer Cycle, we pray for the people and churches of Romania, Hungary and Bulgaria.

World Health Day is April 7 when the World Health Organization commemorates its 76th anniversary. This year the theme is 'My Health, My Right, which reminds us to advocate for equitable access to health services and work towards a healthier, more inclusive world.

04 April 2024

WCC Programmes

Visiting Lebanon, WCC general secretary discusses praying and working together for peace

As World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay began a visit to Lebanon on 20 March, his agenda included a private meeting with His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Holy See of Cilicia.

22 March 2024

Prayer

Cross viewed in dim light with rising sun in the background.

Easter prayers – by Rev. Meghan Johnston Aelabouni

Gracious God, when suffering and injustice seem unending, we pray for Sumud — the steadfast endurance and resilience that we find in you.

21 March 2024

Interview

Rev. Sally Azar: Thursdays in Black “is universally bringing people together”

Our series of interviews with Thursdays in Black ambassadors highlights those who are playing a vital role in increasing the impact of our collective call for a world without rape and violence. Rev. Sally Azar is a pastor at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, and currently serves as a pastor in Jerusalem for both Arabic and English-speaking congregations.

21 March 2024

Image of rubble after a bomb hits the ground.

Words of steadfastness ring from the rubble

“We won’t leave Gaza as long as there is a standing church.”

“We will not be the last Christians living in Gaza.” “

“We lost everything, but we can’t lose our mission and our belonging to this place dear to our hearts.”

“Christianity started here and will continue to be here.”

These are the words people are uttering as Nader Abu Amsha, executive director of Department of Services to Palestinian Refugees of the Middle East Council of Churches (DSPR-MECC), tries to help them simply survive the next day.

21 March 2024

Faith sector's engagement with migrants, refugees for health and HIV services highlighted

A workshop at the World Council of Churches (WCC) has highlighted the right to health and dignified access to it, as well as the faith sector's engagement with migrants and refugees for health and HIV services in fighting stigma and discrimination.

13 March 2024

Bible studies

Seven Weeks for Water 2024, week 4: "Thirst for justice: a Dalit women’s perspective on water rights"

The fourth reflection of the Seven Weeks for Water 2024 series of the WCC Ecumenical Water Network is written by Rev. Dr Anupama Hial. In this reflection, she recalls her struggles in the past as a Dalit woman in India to get access to clean water. She challenges churches to be a catalyst for fulfilling the promise of Isaiah to provide free water to all who are thirsty, especially to the Dalit women.

04 March 2024

Lecture - Speech

Salt of the earth and light of the world - Unity of the church as a sign for unity in the world

In a speech before the Anglican Bishops’ Conference of Southern Africa, WCC moderator Bishop Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm reflected on “Salt of the earth and light of the world: Unity of the church as a sign for unity in the world.”

28 February 2024

WCC Officers

In USA, pilgrims trek for 200+ kilometers calling for ceasefire in Palestine

Sometimes the pilgrims were a couple dozen people walking on the shoulder of a nondescript rural highway in freezing temperatures. Other times their ranks swelled into the hundreds, as they rallied in US cities including Philadelphia, Baltimore, and, finally, Washington, D.C., where, on 21 February, they urged President Biden to call for an end to the war in Palestine.

27 February 2024

Background document

The Church of Sweden: Ecumenical Catalyst, International Agent of Peace

15 February 2024

General Secretary

Bible studies

Seven Weeks for Water 2024, week 1: Water for peace in the Middle East region

The first reflection of the Seven Weeks for Water 2024 series of the WCC Ecumenical Water Network is written by Dr Munib Younan,* bishop emeritus of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land and former president of the Lutheran World Federation. In this reflection, the author, as a Palestinian, in line with this year's theme of "leveraging water for peace,” reflects on Isaiah's promise of free water for the thirsty in the context of the ongoing Israeli war in Gaza that has worsened the water situation in Gaza to catastrophic levels.

14 February 2024

Commission on International Affairs

Background document

WCC comments to the zero draft of the "Pact for the Future"

The World Council of Churches comments to the zero draft of the “Pact for the Future,” the envisaged outcome of the UN Summit for the Future, submitted on 12 February 2024 (extended version).

12 February 2024

Award-winning work means interactive storytelling with inclusivity

As the World Council of Churches (WCC) received an honour from Geneva Engage on 1 February, the communications team shared the types of inspiration and strategic thinking required for award-winning global digital outreach, social media engagement, and inclusivity.

06 February 2024

Thirsting for peace: Gaza's water woes in the midst of war

The water crisis in Gaza has grown particularly alarming, with large parts of the population having access to less than three litres of water per person per day—well below the emergency threshold of 15 litres, according to UNICEF.

31 January 2024

Women and children in Gaza bearing brunt of ongoing war

Women and children in Gaza are bearing the heavy brunt of the ongoing war, according to reports from the United Nations, with close to a million women and girls displaced and 12,882 women and children already perished in a war that has now raged for more than 100 days.

16 January 2024

WCC calls for immediate end to brutal violence in Gaza

As a year of exceptional and increasing conflict draws to a close, and as we pray for peace for all in 2024, “that prospect seems nowhere more remote than for the suffering and traumatized people of Gaza,” said World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay.

30 December 2023

In deeper message after COP28, WCC urges “we must step up our ambition for phasing out fossil fuel”

In a message after COP28, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay reflected more deeply on the disappointments, successes, and future agenda related to climate justice.

21 December 2023